All posts filed under: z44

Did a remake of Alfred Hitchcock’s 1963 horror flick, ‘The Birds’, descend on the Vatican?

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Taking a page out of Alfred Hitchcock’s classic horror flick, The Birds, a seagull and a crow attacked two doves released by the Vatican on January 26, 2014 before tens of thousands of people in Vatican Square. Referred to as the Pope’s caravan of peace, two children, a boy and a girl, released the doves as part of the Angelus Prayer. The Pope was calling for peace in the Ukraine where violence has erupted from people protesting the countries growing ties with Russia. The dove often portrays the Holy Spirit in Scripture and the two were set free from a window in the Vatican as a symbolic gesture of the prayer. Almost immediately, the two doves were viciously attacked.

Repelling Satan’s mind games!

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Have you ever felt your mind was under attack? Have you felt flooded with condemning thoughts or memories of past failure? The Apostle Paul provides insight into a possible source of these thoughts:  “But for one whom you forgive anything, I forgive also; for indeed what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, I did it for your sakes in the presence of Christ so that no advantage would be taken of us by Satan, for we are not ignorant of his devices.” (2 Cor 2:10, 11 NASV) In this passage, Paul was referring to an incident he addressed in his first letter to the Corinthians (1 Cor 5:1-13). It involved a man living with his father’s wife — probably his step mother. 

Was Goliath uncovered at Gath?

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When a Philistine army invaded Judah, the Israeli army led by King Saul intercepted the Philistines at Socoh in Judah.  As the two armies faced each other there was the usual chest pounding. The Philistines sent out Goliath to challenge any Israeli soldier to one-on-one combat (1 Samuel 17). Goliath was a “champion” of the Philistines (v 4) and according to the Biblical record stood nearly 9′ 9″ and his body armour weighed 80 kg or about 160 pounds. He was there to intimidate his opponents. It’s what giants do best. Most liberal theologians discount the story of Goliath’s defeat by a young shepherd boy with a sling, as little more than a myth. However, Israeli archaeologist Dr. Aren Maeir — from Tel Aviv Bar-Ilan University — put these notions to rest when he announced finding Goliath in 2005. 

Is it really a “fossil” fuel?

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The phrase “fossil fuel” implies oil is a product of hundreds of millions of years of vegetation and animal decay. Oil becomes proof of the theory of evolution. It is further argued that since oil is a fossil fuel, there is a limited amount and once it’s gone, it is gone. However, this theory took a major hit on January 14, 2005. That was the day, the Cassini-Huygens satellite scanned Titan, a moon of Saturn, and found massive quantities methane — literally lakes of methane. 

Duck Dynasty men encounter the sexual temptations packaged with fame

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The men of Duck Dynasty were recently interviewed in the October issue of Men’s Journal. In the interview, they shared some of the temptations associated with their sudden rise to fame. A&E’s Duck Dynasty is the hottest reality show in the U.S. This past spring, its third season debut show had 8.6 million viewers, the largest in A&E’s history. Phil Robertson and his wife Kay started Duck Commander — a duck call manufacturer — that is the theme of the show. The business is now run by Phil’s sons. All the Robertsons, save one, sport full blown beards. And all are God-fearing men, born-again and very family oriented. But the sudden fame associated with the show has brought with it temptation. 

Was it a Unicorn or a frolicking Elasmotherium?

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“He makes them also to skip like a calf: Lebanon and Sirion like a young unicorn.” Psalm 29:6 KJV The unicorn is a horse-like creature with a single long horn protruding from its forehead. It is  a myth, yet here it is mentioned in the King James Bible, not only once but nine times in five different books. Even God spoke about unicorns in  Job 39:10. Atheists use these verses to mock the Bible. But when you look at the Biblical references to unicorn, a completely different impression of the animal emerges: God brought him forth out of Egypt; he hath as it were the strength of an unicorn: he shall eat up the nations his enemies, and shall break their bones, and pierce [them] through with his arrows. Numbers 24:8 KJ The unicorn metaphorically portrays power (see also Numbers 23:22 and Psalms 22:21). It was a powerful beast capable of breaking bones and destroying enemies. However, if an ancient king used our modern unicorn to depict his strength, at best it would produce a …

Marriage helps beat colon cancer

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A study conducted in 2011 showed marriage helps individuals beat colon cancer. Colon Cancer is the fourth most common form of cancer in the U.S. Researchers from Penn State’s College of Medicine and Brigham Young University followed 127,753 patients with colon cancer and discovered a married person had 14% better survival rate. Researchers calculated out any other factors that could contribute to better results such as earlier diagnostic and more aggressive treatment that would lead to better results.

Forgiveness is not a contradiction

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In many ways, the Bible seems like a book of opposites. In the Old Testament law it was an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But in the New Testament, Jesus said we must forgive those who do you wrong. These two views are so extreme, they seem almost irreconciable. Yet the sad story of the senseless murder of Brian Muha best explains this paradox. Brian was attending school at Franciscan University in Steubenville, Ohio, where he planned to become a doctor. He had returned home to briefly to visit Rachel, his mother, and was heading back for summer classes. 

Jesus the magician?

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In 2008, marine archaeologists announced the discovery of a small pot that may contain the earliest reference to Jesus Christ. The pot was found while excavating the ancient underwater ruins of Alexandria’s harbor located in Egypt. The submerged area also includes the sunken island of Antirhodos where some believe Cleopatra had her palace. In an article posted on MSNBC, Jennifer Viegas of the Discovery Channel says the small pot had the words “DIA CHRSTOU O GOISTAIS” engraved along its side. Most believe the word CHRSTOU is a reference to Jesus Christ. The pot is dated between the Second century BC and the early part of the first century placing it within the ministry years of Jesus. But it’s the remaining words that proved controversial

Questonable research?

Baby comes back to life on chapel altar

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Shortly after Yasmin Gomes was born she quit breathing. The Brazilian doctors overseeing the birth tried to revive her, but failed. A nurse in the operating room was so devastated by the death she put the baby in a box and put her on the altar of the hospital chapel. Three hours later the grandmother, Elza Silva, and a mortician came to collect the body and were told the baby was in the chapel. When they went to the box the baby suddenly kicked out and started breathing. The baby and mother Jenifer de Silva Gomes are doing fine. In an interview, the doctor said, “In 20 years of medicine, I have never seen anything like this.” Source: Dead baby laid on chapel altar comes back to life: The Washington Times